Octavarium
by Mystik
Summary: Jounouchi will have to face his darkest fears in order to save the one he loves. But it will be enough? Chapter 4 up!
1. Prologue

**Pairing: **Seto/Jou, Yami+Yugi

**Beta:** JennieB - The best

**Disclaimer: **They don't belong to me, damn it!

**Notes:** Lyrics in italic and between quotes belong to Dream Theater.

* * *

**Octavarium - prologue**

_Jounouchi…_

_Jounouchi…_

The blond frowned in his sleep. What was that voice?

_Save…him._

_Save him. Before it's too late._

Jou woke up, sitting up on the side of the bed in one quick movement and gasping for air. What was that sensation? He put his hand on his chest; his heart was pounding loudly and quickly. That was when he noticed two things.

First, it was still night; Two o'clock in the morning according to the watch that sat beside the four-post bed. Second…his lover wasn't there with him. Jou's frown deepened, the echoing words from his sleep and his current situation beginning to worry him.

It had been five years now since he and Seto had started living together. All of his friends had been a little reluctant in the beginning since they had only been dating for such short period of time. But, after seeing that the brunette had only the best intentions with Jou, they had accepted without further question.

That thought made the blond smile for a few seconds, and he remembered all the gang acting like a mother giving her daughter away in marriage. But, the happy thought soon faded when he came back to the present. Where was Seto at this time of the night? He didn't make it a habit of leaving the bed at this bizarre hour.

Sighing, the blond tugged the sheets from his body and got up, going over to the large window and opening the drapes, the moonlight casting a faint glow into the room. He closed his eyes and opened them again, staring out at the full moon, which was a little red around the edges and…

Wait a minute. Red? Jou stared at the moon again, and it was really red around the edges, like someone's blood had stained it. A flash of white caught his attention, and he turned around, seeing a piece of paper sitting on the desk. He padded over to the it and picked up the sheet, curious about what had been written. He widened his eyes as he read all the elaborate words, his heart beating faster each second:

"_Trapped inside this Octavarium_

_We move in circles._

_Trapped inside this Octavarium_

_On a gleaming razor's edge_

_Trapped inside this Octavarium_

_Colliding with our fate._

_Trapped inside this Octavarium_

_This story ends where it began."_

_You will never see him alive again._

"Seto…" he whispered, tears streaming down his cheeks without his permission. What have they done to his dragon? And worse than that…who were they?!

TBC


	2. Chapter 1

**Pairing: **Seto/Jou, Yami+Yugi

**Beta:** JennieB - The best

**Disclaimer: **They don't belong to me, damn it!

**Notes:** Lyrics in italic and between quotes belong to Dream Theater.

* * *

**Octavarium - Chapter one**

"Uhn… answer the phone…"

Yami blinked as he heard his aibou whisper against his neck, the loud ring echoing through the bedroom. He disentangled himself from the little body, his eyes glaring at the mobile, cursing it for waking them at such unholy hour. His feet padded across the carpet and then he reached for the phone and picked it up. "Who is this?" he demanded in a sleepy voice.

"Yami…"

The desperate tone in Jou's voice woke the wild-haired male up immediately. He rubbed his eyes, cradling the phone on his shoulder. "Jou, what's wrong?" asked the former pharaoh, frowning a little.

"Seto…he's…oh God." He heard the blond take a deep breath. "He's missing. Something awful has happened to him!"

"How can you tell? Maybe he went to the kitchen or something…"

"There's a note."

"What? What is does it say?" asked Yami, growing more worried by the second.

"It has some strange words and…" There was the sound of sobbing from across the line "It says…I will never see him alive…again. I know they're talking about him, I just know!"

"They?" asked Yami in confusion.

"I don't know who! But I know that someone took Seto! You and Yugi have to help me!" exclaimed the blond, seemingly on the verge of a panic attack.

The former pharaoh frowned even more as he processed this information. Strange words? A threat? Seto missing? This was odd, even for them. He sighed and decided he had no alternative. "We'll be there in twenty minutes."

Without waiting for an answer, Yami hung up the phone, padding back to the bed and waking his aibou. Soon they were on their way to Kaiba's mansion. They found Jou dressed in a dark robe, and seated on the stairs to the porch of the mansion, waiting for them. As soon as they had parked, the blond youth got up and walked over to them, his golden eyes wide with fear.

"Thank God you two arrived! I just don't know what to think anymore, and I'm going crazy here; I had almost called Mokuba in the States, but I realized he must be in his classes right now, so I stopped myself and…"

"Breathe, Katsuya," Yami said, using the other's first name in an effort to reassure him. He was now really worried. "Let's get inside and then you tell us what happened, okay?"

The blond nodded numbly and followed them inside the mansion, where they sat on the leather couch in the living room. Yugi sat next to his friend, combing his fingers through the blond locks gently.

"So…what happened exactly?" the short youth asked softly.

Jou took a deep breath and handed Yami a piece of white paper he had clutched in his hands. The former pharaoh arched one eyebrow, picking up the paper and reading the words, his eyes widening more with each one he read. "I can't believe this…"

"Yami? Do you know something about this?" Yugi asked seriously, hearing something in his lover's tone of voice that he didn't like at all.

The other didn't respond. Instead, he got up and went to the large window, opening the curtains and looking up at the sky, his frown becoming deeper. "The moon is red around the edges."

"You noticed too?" commented Jou, now a little calmer than before.

"Yes…and that is not good. The moon…this note…" Yami sighed. "I had really hoped that this would never happen, but it seems that my wish was not granted."

"What are you talking about love?" asked Yugi.

"Seto's past has returned, and is seeking revenge."

"What are you talking about?!" exclaimed Jou as he got to his feet.

"Back in Egypt," began Yami, turning his expressive eyes to them, "Seto had many enemies because of his position and his powers as a high priest, even inside the palace. When he confronted me because of the shadow games, these enemies saw that as an opportunity to seek revenge. They caught him and trapped him."

"In this Octavarium thing?" asked the blond.

"Kind of. You see, Octavarium comes from octave, a note played in music that resounds like a never ending sound. Back then, there was a mausoleum that had this myth surrounding it called 'the octavarium curse'. Every three hours, you could hear a sound echoing from inside, along with these awful screams and shouts. It was an old, sacred temple, where legend says that a fire had killed the priest inside. The story went on to say that if a person entered that place, they would never come out again."

"But Yami…" interjected Yugi, "This mausoleum is in Egypt, right? Why are these people, whoever they are, citing this myth?"

"The thing is that Seto, he was the first person to ever come out of the mausoleum alive. But afterwards, he was never the same again. The people that had put him there…they were killed by Seto himself."

"God," whispered Jou as he wrapped his arms around himself, the hair on the back of his neck standing up. That was not a good sign. "Do you think that they were reincarnated in this time, like Seto and the rest of us?"

"Maybe yes, maybe not. They could even be spirits like I was."

"But if they want revenge, then why they are telling me about this?" Jou asked suddenly, looking over at the former pharaoh.

Yami approached the sofa, sitting down on his other side and putting a hand on the blonde's shoulder. He looked at him sympathetically. "It's because you helped Seto to kill them."

"WHAT?!" exclaimed the blond as he leapt up from the sofa, his heart hammering in his chest.

"You don't remember anything about your life in Egypt, right?" After seeing the other nod, Yami sighed. "I was waiting for you to remember, and for Seto to start believing, but unfortunately, this happened first. If they are after you, too, then you have to know about everything, to be prepared."

The blond sat back down on the sofa again and crossed his arms, looking very much like Kaiba. "So, start talking."

-----

"You won't believe this shit!" exclaimed Honda, which made Jou hold the phone away from his ear.

"What is it Honda? And don't talk so loud!"

"Turn on the television. It's on all channels!"

The blond did just that, his eyes widening at what he saw. The entire city of Domino was stunned, to say the least, at seeing a very weird construction that seemed to have been built overnight…_right on top of Kaiba Corp._ The famous building was gone, seemingly crushed by an angular-shaped temple, one that looked very much like an…octagon. He could hear his friend talking, but all his attention was focused on last night…on that note.

"Fuck," he cursed as he hung up the phone and ran to the doorway, putting his jacket quickly. He refused the chauffer and took his bike instead, arriving downtown in half an hour.

A huge crowd was already gathered around the mausoleum when he stopped his bike, and he tried to pass through unnoticed. He was doing pretty well, until a hand caught his shoulder and pulled him into an alley. "Get off me!" said the blond as he tried to free himself from the grasp.

"We don't have much time."

Hearing that voice, he stopped struggling and turned around.

What he saw was a strange girl. She reminded him of Ishizu, because of the Egyptian clothes and the long, dark hair. Her eyes were the deepest blue he had ever seen, and she had a weird tattoo covering one of them. It startled him. Only Seto had eyes like that.

"Who are you?"

"It's not important right now. You have to help Seto," said the girl in a heavily accented Japanese. The blond's eyes widened.

"Your voice…I heard it in my sleep last night!"

The girl smiled and extended her hand, holding a piece of paper out to him. "Glad you could hear me. Listen; they caught Seto, but it's not too late. You will have to enter the mausoleum and save him."

"What, me? How? And who the fuck are you?!" demanded the blond, getting more and more pissed off by the minute.

"For now, you can call me Hika," said the girl. "Here, take this. It's the first riddle you will need to solve to pass through the first gate of the temple. But, it will only work at midnight. After that…"

"After that…?" echoed the blond, taking the paper from her tiny hands. She looked to be around ten years old.

"You will have only twenty four hours to complete your task. Every three hours, you will hear a sound echoing through the whole temple. You have to be through the next gate every time the sound echoes. That is the only way you will receive the keys to open the gates. Once you reach the center of the mausoleum, you can save him."

The blond looked at the paper, reading the mysterious words printed upon it:

"_First…_

_Our deadly sins feel his mortal wrath  
Remove all obstacles from our path."_

"What is this all about?" asked the blond, looking up to face the girl.

But she was gone.

TBC


	3. Chapter 2

**Pairing: **Seto/Jou, Yami+Yugi

**Beta:** JennieB - The best

**Disclaimer: **They don't belong to me, damn it!

**Notes:** Lyrics in italic and between quotes belong to Dream Theater.

* * *

**Octavarium - Chapter two**

"You are out of your mind."

"You can keep saying that, but I'm still going inside that damn thing!" shouted Jou as he stared at the one who had been his best friend since forever.

"Guys, a little help here?" Honda asked as he crossed his arms, obviously pissed.

"Stop fighting, both of you!" exclaimed Anzu in annoyance. "I know how you're feeling about this Jou, but you can't go alone!"

The blond snorted, glaring at his friend. "Try me."

"We are going with you," Yami said suddenly. Jou opened his mouth to retort, but one look from the former pharaoh and he shut it again.

"Who was the girl?" asked Yugi, who was seated beside the blond.

"I really don't know, but she looks familiar to me…and she had eyes just like Seto's."

"She told you her name?" asked Yami.

"Kind of, I guess. She just told me I could call her Hika, but she isn't from around here, her Japanese is very bad."

Yami stood and looked at the old clock in the living room. It was five in the afternoon, and the worst part of that day was over. After the whole city had seen the strange temple where Kaiba Corp.'s building was supposed to be, the media and the people of the city had been banging at the mansion doors, demanding answers.

The former pharaoh had been quite surprised at how well Jou had handled everything, even with Seto's absence and everything else that had happened. He could see more and more of the brunette's traits in the blond's personality, and he could only smile about that. Once everything was solved – and it would be – he would look to see if the brunette was taking on some of the characteristics of his lover, as well.

"What time did she say you have to enter there?" asked Honda.

"Midnight. Sharp," the blond answered as he got up. "You guys want something to drink? This whole mess with the media has given me a headache."

"Sure; want some help to bring the drinks?" Yugi asked with a slight smile.

"No, I got it," the blond replied before leaving the room and returning a few minutes later with some orange juice for everybody.

They started to plan a strategy of how to act once they were inside the temple, wondering what they would find there. Honda was the first to fall asleep; after that, it was Anzu, who was soon followed by Yugi.

"This day sure tired them out," Yami pointed out through a yawn.

"Yeah…" said Jou softly, still sipping his juice.

"Jou, can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead."

The former pharaoh blinked, suddenly feeling sleepy. He looked at the blond. "What did you put in the orange juice?"

"Sleeping pills. A whole bottle," answered Jou, his voice incredibly calm. He finished his drink and got up, smiling at the other. "Sorry, man. But I have to do this alone."

"Jou…what were…you…" Yami felt his vision start to blur, and next thing he knew, he fell asleep on the sofa.

The blond sighed deeply, looking around at his friends passed out around him. He walked out of the living room and grabbed his jacket, leaving the mansion on his bike. Sure, the pills wouldn't hold them that much, but it would be sufficient.

-----

The hands on the Domino clock tower pointed to eleven pm. The blond parked his bike in one of the alleys and removed his helmet. He was wearing some jeans and a blue t-shirt and on his feet, his same old sneakers. He sighed, looking up at the angular-shaped temple and remembering all of the things Yami had told him about his past in ancient Egypt.

"I have no other choice," Jou said to himself as he took the piece of paper Hika had given to him that morning and opened it, reading the riddle once more. "First…Our deadly sins feel his mortal wrath…Remove all obstacles from our path. How the hell am I supposed to pass through the gate with these kinds of clues?!" exclaimed the blond in frustration.

He started to walk toward the temple. At that hour, that part of the city was deserted. All the people were in their homes, many of them sleeping. But, on closer inspection, one could see all sorts of lowlifes lingering around. However, none of them would try something with Katsuya Jounouchi. Even before he had started dating Seto, hell, even before he had met Yugi, he had been feared in the underworld. It wasn't something he was proud of, but it had its advantages. Like now, even though he was publicly known as Kaiba Seto's lover, there wasn't any danger to him in walking around those streets, alone in the night. No thief would try anything.

The blond was repeating the strange words again and again in his head, trying to find some solution for them. Was he supposed to write down the answer to that riddle? Or say out loud? He was very much confused, and the things he had done in his past life were mixing together in his head with his current one, causing the beginnings of a headache. "Great. Just what I needed," exclaimed the blond aloud, to no one in particular.

Eleven thirty. He had been musing to himself for half an hour, and he still couldn't reach any conclusion. He picked up his pace when he saw the front of the temple, which was illuminated partially by the streetlights.

-----

"I can't believe he did this to us!" exclaimed Honda, pissed beyond belief.

"That doesn't really matter now; we have to go after him, and quick!" Yugi exclaimed worriedly. It was eleven fifty according to the old clock in Kaiba's living room.

"We will take our car," Yami said resolutely. He would give the blond a piece of his mind as soon as he saw him.

They drove downtown, disregarding all the traffics laws in their haste. Honda slammed on the brakes and they climbed out of the car, heading toward the looming figure of the temple, almost in a run. The hands of the Domino clock tower pointed to midnight. The clang of the bell echoed loudly through that part of the city, and then they saw the shadow of Jou standing at the front gates of the temple.

"Jou!! Stop!" Anzu screamed, now breaking into a run along with the others.

The blond turned around and smiled softly at them. "Sorry, guys." The stony gates had started to open. The blond took a deep breath and walked inside the temple, hearing the gates already starting to close behind him. He still could hear the screams and pleas from his friends outside as the door finally closed and he was left alone in the dark. "I'm happy I brought this," Jou said to himself as he took a flashlight from his jacket pocket and turned it on. He illuminated the area and discovered that he was standing inside a huge corridor; even the flashlight couldn't illuminate all the way to the end of it. He took a deep breath again. "Wait for me, Seto."

He started walking toward the end of the corridor, hearing little noises and sighs that seemed to be coming from inside the walls. It looked like the first riddle would soon be revealed.

TBC


	4. Chapter 3

**Pairing: **Seto/Jou, Yami+Yugi

**Beta:** JennieB - The best

**Disclaimer: **They don't belong to me, damn it!

**Notes:** Lyrics in italic and between quotes belong to Dream Theater.

* * *

**Octavarium - Chapter three**

"Okay," Jou said to himself as he took a deep breath.

He looked at his watch, setting his alarm for three hours from that moment. He had to reach the end of the corridor before that. He started walking, listening to the strange sounds coming from inside the walls. He strained his ears, and soon could discern what they were saying. Some of them were calling for help, others were shouting obscenities and depraved words. He continued to walk, illuminating the way with his flashlight.

Along the way, the object in his hands began to fail. Jou frowned and shook the flashlight until it worked again, but seconds later it failed again. This time, the battery was completely dead, leaving him in the dark.

"Great, just what I needed," exclaimed the blond to no one in particular. He put his hand against the wall and started walking again, little goose bumps breaking out across his body.

Hours could have passed, or just minutes; he really couldn't discern any sense of time. He walked and walked and never reached the end of corridor; in fact, it looked as if it was growing even more distant. The blond could hear the voices, but they were getting softer, until they stopped shouting altogether. Jou stopped too, and the wall started to feel cold against his hand. He breathed silently, feeling the small puffs of air leaving his lungs.

"What the hell?!" the blond murmured to himself. The corridor was starting to get cold as well, sending shivers down his body.

"How dare you?" a voice shouted in the dark, and the blond spun around.

"Who's there?!" exclaimed Jou, now breathing faster.

Few people knew that Jounouchi Katsuya was afraid of the dark. This was courtesy of his father, of course – when the blond had been eleven, Jounouchi Senior had locked him inside the tiny little closet they had in their home for not making dinner like he had wanted. And, he had left him there for almost two days. Only when he had felt hungry, and had been too drunk to cook something properly himself had he let the blond out.

Over the years, the blond had hidden this phobia from everybody really fucking well. They had believed that when they entered dark places, the teen was just afraid of the unknown; Jou couldn't care less. It was better for him that they thought that. God forbid if Hirutani had found out about it; it would have only been material to blackmail him with.

Seto had been the first one to find out. It had been around the same time they had started 'dating'; the gang had agreed to meet at Kaibaland to celebrate the beginning of the summer vacation. The teen could never refuse such a fun request, so he had gone to the theme park that afternoon to meet up with his friends at the entrance to the house of the mirrors. After arriving, he had decided to enter the attraction, which was empty at that time. As he had been walking through the mirrors, the ground had started to shake. Everything had happened pretty quickly; the earthquake had lasted about ten seconds, but it had been enough to send the house of the mirrors to the ground, with Jou inside. He couldn't really tell how long he had stayed buried in the earth, surrounded by darkness. It was like he was eleven all over again. But, he did remember when the sliver of light had appeared before him. The blond had thought that he had died and gone to heaven – until he heard that voice.

"Puppy, are you alright?"

The amber irises had blinked in shock as the face of Seto Kaiba had taken form. The brunette had extended his hand, and Jounouchi had sobbed hard, feeling the panic attack finally consume him as he had taken Seto's hand. The young CEO, with the help of the fire brigade, had taken him out of the ruins, and soon he had been breathing the night air. He remembered not wanting anyone near him until he had reached the hospital, not even his friends. The only exception had been the brunette who, much to his surprise, hadn't complained a bit. That had been the turning point for both of them.

"We will kill you," the voice whispered in his ear, jarring the blond from his memories, to turn around once again.

"How dare you?"

"Traitor!"

"Murderer!"

"We will kill you."

Jou started to run through the corridor, his breath coming in short, sharp gasps; he was having a panic attack. The words were being repeated over and over again, surrounding him, making him feel as if the walls were closing, threatening to crush him. He could almost feel ghostly hands caressing him, trying to make him stop the frantic run to the end of the corridor.

"We will kill you."

"You and that priest."

Jou stumbled over a stone and fell to the ground, hurting his arm on the process. As he heard the last sentence, he frowned. They were talking about the brunette now? The blond attempted to calm his breathing, trying hard to not be overwhelmed by his fears as he thought about the last words uttered by the strange voices.

When Yami had said that he had helped the brunette to kill those who had harmed him, he hadn't understood why. Then, when the former pharaoh had told him what had happened, he had understood even less. Apparently, he had been the captain of the personal guard assigned to the high priest, Seth. And, they had been renowned for detesting each other. Amusing, to say the least. But, how and why he had helped the priest to kill those men was still beyond him.

"Die."

"Die."

"Feel our wrath."

Jou blinked, running over the first riddle in his mind again. He narrowed his eyes and got to his feet, holding onto his bruised arm. His right hand touched the wall again, and he felt the cold stone steal the warmth from his fingers.

"Show your faces, assholes! I know it was all of you that were killed by me and Seto!"

The voices stopped. Jou held his breath, waiting to see what would happen next. He didn't have long to wait. The ground started to shake violently, and pieces of stone started to fall from the ceiling. The blond's eyes widened as he remembered that distant day from Kaibaland all over again.

"No…" Jou whispered in fear, walking quickly along the corridor, trying to repress his phobia as best he could. It was not the time to come apart and act like a girl!

"Fool."

"Idiot."

"Scum."

He started running again, determined to find the exit to that place and find his lover. He looked at his watch. It had been two hours since he had entered the temple. The voices were becoming a crescendo, cursing him and threatening him even more.

"It's only my imagination, there's no one here…I will not be afraid of the dark…I will not," the blond repeated to himself as he ran non-stop.

Jou avoided the rocks falling from the roof as best he could, his arm now aching with a numbing pain. He gritted his teeth, still running as fast as he could, bumping into the walls and scraping his skin in the process. But, he didn't even think about that; his instincts were telling him that if he stopped, he would be crushed right there.

"Die!"

"Die!"

"Die!"

The blond was trying to ignore those shouts, the pain in his arm getting worse by the second. He couldn't stop, he wouldn't stop; it was all he could think about. Suddenly, he looked ahead and saw a flash of light.

"Please, let it be the end of this damned corridor!" muttered Jou.

The ground started to shake even more, larger pieces of stone now falling on him. The blond cursed when one of those cut his already wounded arm, but he still didn't stop.

"Feel our wrath."

"Be removed from our path."

The blond breathed harshly, his lungs aching from the running he was doing. He now realized what the first riddle had been about: he was the ultimate obstacle to those souls who wished to destroy Seto. He needed to be killed. That was why…

"I will beat the shit out of you before you can stop me from saving him!" screamed Jou between gasps.

The light became brighter and brighter until it finally blinded the blond. He ran headlong through it, growling defiantly. Those motherfuckers would soon find out who they had messed with. As soon as he crossed into the bright light, he felt to his knees, holding his arm, and panting.

"I did it," was all he could say to himself.

A cold wind blew through the room and made his body shiver. Jou looked up and found himself in a large room, like an old senate house, made of black marble. He got to his feet slowly, still recovering his breath. Sighing heavily, he tore a strip of cloth from his t-shirt and made an arm sling. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, his looked at his watch; he had made it on time. In five minutes, the second gate would open. It had felt like so much more time had passed inside that corridor. And if the other places were like that at all, he would have to be prepared.

"Looks like you screwed us both, Seto," Jou said to himself with a trace of bitter amusement.

The five minutes passed quite quickly, and soon a gate appeared where the senators would have been seated. The stony gates opened slowly, and a flash of blue light drew the blonde's attention. He looked to his left, and saw it.

There, written on the walls, was the next riddle.

"_Second…_

_Asking questions_

_Search for clues,_

_The answer's been right in front of you."_

Jou memorized those words and a few moments later, he walked through the second gate.

TBC


	5. Chapter 4

**Pairing: **Seto/Jou, Yami+Yugi

**Beta:** JennieB - The best

**Disclaimer: **They don't belong to me, damn it!

**Notes:** Lyrics in italic and between quotes belong to Dream Theater.

* * *

**Octavarium - Chapter four**

Jou was in the dark. Again. He sighed, trying to let his eyes adjust to the darkness before he dared to take any step forward. Suddenly, a blue glow appeared above him, illuminating his path softly. The blond blinked.

He was in a room full of mirrors. Several copies of his own reflection were looking at him, all of them wearing the same surprised look that was stamped on his face. "They are fucking kidding with me," Jou said to himself, and the reflections repeated the words silently, their mouths moving synchronously. He started walking, very cautiously, looking where he was going and staring at his reflections every now and then, anticipating that there would be some trick any minute now. At least the pain in his arm had been reduced to a faint throb.

He walked for some time , and still nothing happened. It felt weird to have several versions of himself following him around, but eventually Jou started to get used to it, and his mind started to focus on finding the third gate that would lead to his dragon. Almost twenty minutes had passed before the blond noticed something different. He stopped, stepped backwards, and his eyes widened. This reflection was different from the others; it was still him, but at the same time, not. His skin appeared darker, and his clothes he wore were different – It was some kind of…

"Oh my God," muttered Jou as he stared at his Egyptian counterpart.

The reflection smirked back at him, tilting his head to one side as if examining his modern incarnation. This Jou wore a white loincloth, a golden necklace adorned his upper body, and his amber eyes were rimmed with eyeliner, which gave a dark look to his face. Jou touched the mirror slowly, feeling the cool glass against his fingertips.

"What the hell?" he murmured when the reflection raised his hands and touched his fingers in response. He could _feel_ those fingers against his skin. The blond stepped back, and then the reflection smiled again, giving him that infuriating smirk. Finally, he raised both hands and slowly mouthed something. Jou could read his lips:

'Got you.'

As soon as he read those words, a pair of hands reached out of the mirror behind him and grabbed him around his waist, pulling him back hard. Jou gasped in pain as his back smacked against the mirror, and he felt the material cracking behind him. "Motherfucker!" exclaimed Jou as he struggled to get free.

His past self laughed, even though no sound was made. One hand left his waist to grab him around his throat. Jou panicked and started struggling more, feeling like his lungs were being filled with water. He couldn't breathe. The Jou in front of him opened his mouth to speak again.

'You will pay for hurting him.'

His vision was starting to go dark around the edges, and his body was becoming weaker by the minute. He focused all his energy on staying awake; he knew he couldn't pass out now. His wounded arm escaped from the makeshift sling, and before he could think about anything, he drove his elbow hard against the mirror behind him. His yell of pain echoed throughout the chamber, but the hand strangling him slipped from his throat and fell limp, disappearing after a second. The blond fell to his knees, coughing for breath, and his arm hurting like a motherfucker all over again.

His old self tilted his head to one side again. Jou looked up and saw the question form on those lips.

'What did you do to Seth?'

Jou blinked in curiosity at the question, and then he went over the riddle in his mind again. 'The answer's been right in front of you'. The last verse rang a bell inside of him, and he looked into the amber eyes, ones that were so like his. "I'm not a ghost," the blond explained, feeling pretty stupid at that moment to be talking with his own reflection. "I'm not the one who hurt Seto. Can't you see that we are the same person?"

The reflection looked like he was thinking about Jou's words, and then he raised one of his hands and opened his mouth again.

'Seth is being tortured. I can feel it.'

Jou widened his eyes and, despite all the enormous physical and emotional pain he felt, he got up, gently cradling his arm again. Carefully, he slipped it back into the arm sling, and then he approached the mirror once more to touch his reflection. He felt those fingers touch his in response. "Where is he?" the blond asked slowly.

'With the traitors.'

He arched one eyebrow at that before drawing closer.

"Why do you want to help Seth? I thought that you two hated each other."

The reflection smirked at that before he lowered his hands and opened his mouth.

'That's not quite right.'

Jou blinked and lowered his hands, as well. He looked at his watch and frowned. He had ten minutes left before the next gate opened. "How do I get out of here? I have to find Seto."

The reflection tilted his head again, and then raised his finger, pointing to the left.

'They will stop you. Run without looking back.'

Jou nodded, and then smiled in response. He kind of liked his old-self – even if he had tried to kill him earlier. He looked at the hallway full of mirrors and took a deep breath. "Ok, let's do this."

He started running and now, more than ever, he was thankful for being a P.E. teacher. He had never ran so much in his life, not even when he was in Hirutani's gang. He had gone about five meters down that hall when he heard all of his reflections suddenly start screaming. He tried to cover his ears with both hands, but the sound was outrageously loud. "Oh, fuck, just shut the hell up!" exclaimed the blond as he continued to run. He saw the reflections break through the glass, and he knew that they were coming for him. He let out a squeak of surprise, and then started running even faster. A moment later he could see the passage right in front of him.

One hand caught him by his foot, and he fell to the ground. The reflections, now looking more like zombies than him started to go after him. He kicked the damned hand away and got up, half crawling, half running as he continued toward the exit. Another hand gripped him hard on his wounded arm. Jou hissed in pain and punched the creature's face. As soon as he did that, a white hot pain traversed his cheek, and his heart sank. He had come to the quick realization that if he fought against those things, he would get hurt as well. Just great. "Well, I guess that means I'll just have to pass through the third gate a whole lot faster!" the blond exclaimed to himself, and he looked down at his watch. Two minutes.

He tried to avoid the collisions with his reflections, and any time he would throw them away, he was hurt equally in the process. As he approached the passage, he saw some lines being drawn in front of him – lines which quickly formed into words.

"_Third,_

_Try to break through  
Long to connect  
Falls on deaf ears and fails muted breath._"

He just threw himself against the passage, and everything went black.

-----

"He's strong. Stronger than we imagined."

"He's the incarnation of Jono after all."

"Yes, but to pass through three gates? No one could ever do that."

"He couldn't have passed the first one if that girl hadn't helped him."

"Complaining about Sechat will get you nowhere."

"So, what do we do about the blond?"

The shadow smirked, the expression deadly. "Make him remember."

The other shadow smiled, and nodded in agreement. Like water being disturbed by a pebble, he vanished into thin air. The first shadow turned around when his companion had left, and his cold, grey hand grabbed the pale face by the chin. The beautiful face that was smeared with blood and bruises.

"Looks like your daughter warned your beloved about the dangers of this labyrinth, high priest."

Seto didn't answer; he was still passed out. His body was covered with only a loincloth, one that was now stained red with his blood. His body was suspended in mid-air.

The shadow laughed, the sound low and cruel. "Let's see if he will pass through the next stage of the labyrinth. Maybe he can even find us – if you're able to resist us until then."

He let go of the brunette's chin and his head fell to rest against his chest, still unmoving. The shadow then disappeared, leaving Seto alone in the chamber.

TBC


End file.
